Glacial Recession in East Africa

Glaciers around the world are receding rapidly and tropical alpine glaciers in East Africa are no exception. Despite not typically being associated with the African environment in many people's minds (including my own prior to exploring this topic), they are deserving of increased concern. While its contributions to global emissions are insignificant, the continent is facing the most severe repercussions, as suggested by the most recent IPCC report. Provided that coverage of this matter is rather scarce, I am looking forward to educating myself about this topic and hopefully inspire others to do the same.

Rapidly shrinking Little Penck Glacier, Mt. Kilimanjaro (photo by Douglas R. Hardy)

The pronounced glacial recession observed in East Africa since the 19th century has led to a growing concern over the impact of meltwater on river discharge. I will explore the correlation between drying rivers and the loss of ice, considered insignificant by some (Taylor, 2009), and, in turn, the impact of increased seasonality resulting from glacier retreats.

Understanding of the glacier-climate interactions is crucial in getting a better sense of the mechanisms driving the rapid change and mitigating future impacts. With the current knowledge of the midtroposphere being limited, a deeper analysis of climate signals from the East African glaciers is particularly useful as these glaciers appear in elevations ranging from 5-6 km above sea level where the climate signals are captured (Mölg, 2009).

Paleoclimatologically speaking, I will look at the glaciers' evolution during earlier geologic ages, but also address recent changes and the current exacerbated rate of decline due to increased anthropogenic activities, as well as delve into the challenges future may bring regarding these complex and diverse systems. A review of academic literature will also allow for a critical reflection on media's portrayal of glacial recession in East Africa.